Do Something Great

“As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received” (Ephesians 4:1).
One day as Abraham Lincoln was leaving church, he was asked what he thought of the minister’s sermon. “The minister had a strong voice and good delivery,” the President began, “But he forgot the most important part of a sermon. He forgot to ask us to do something great.”
Sometimes it’s the preacher who forgets; sometimes it’s the listener. But we need reminding. Biblical preaching is neither negotiating, nor cliches. Great preaching does not deal in the petty and the trivial.
Like a soft drink in melted ice, we allow the call of Christ to become diluted, at times. God doesn’t merely call on us to be nice, or polite, or merely congenial. The call is to discipleship, and sacrifice, obedience to him, and service. The call is global, the implications eternal, the stakes are nothing less than the souls of men and women.
Yes — do demand that your preacher call you to something great! He should have love in his heart, but fire in his belly. And when he does, understand that call for what it is! There should be urgency in both the preaching, and the listening. If you hear platitudes, you heard a “thought for the day.” But if you hear the voice of God through scripture, you were called upon to do something great!

Stan Mitchell

Stan has preached since 1976, in Zimbabwe, California, Texas and Tennessee. He serves as preacher for the Red Walnut Church of Christ in Bath Springs, TN. He is currently Professor of Bible at Freed-Hardeman University. He is married to the former Marjorie McCarthy, and has one daughter, Tracy Watts. He is the author of four books: The Wise Get Wiser, the Foolish More Foolish: The Book of Proverbs, Give the Winds a Mighty Voice: Our Worship in Song, and Equipping the Saints for Ministry. He has recently published another book, "Will Our Faith Have Children: Developing Leadership in the Church for the Next Generation.

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Stan Mitchell

Stan has preached since 1976, in Zimbabwe, California, Texas and Tennessee. He serves as preacher for the Red Walnut Church of Christ in Bath Springs, TN. He is currently Professor of Bible at Freed-Hardeman University. He is married to the former Marjorie McCarthy, and has one daughter, Tracy Watts. He is the author of four books: The Wise Get Wiser, the Foolish More Foolish: The Book of Proverbs, Give the Winds a Mighty Voice: Our Worship in Song, and Equipping the Saints for Ministry. He has recently published another book, "Will Our Faith Have Children: Developing Leadership in the Church for the Next Generation.
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